Jovan Musk Cologne Spray-How Much Water Can They Add And Still Sell It?

I started wearing Jovan Musk in 1975. Back then, all I needed was a few

strategic sprays and the gorgeous silage would fill my bedroom with amazing scent. Not only could I smell it all day, but the compliments from others lasted throughout the evening.

Jovan's original formula for the musk cologne spray was richer in color than what they offer us today. Less alcohol meant the notes could really meld and come alive. Anyone who wore this scent in the 1970's will definitely know the difference. Today's rendition is technically a rip-off and I'll tell you why.

Vintage 1970's Color

Modern Color

 They have watered this scent down so much, that by the time you put the cap back on, it's over. That is not the Jovan Musk experience of yesteryear. This was one seriously sexy perfume back in the day. It was your man-magnet fragrance because the longer you wore it, the better it smelled.  I cannot begin to explain how upsetting it is to see these wonderful classics diluted into low-quality copies of their former selves.

I can understand that some of the musk fragrances that were rich and musky back then came from real animals and were outlawed. However, that is no excuse to water down the remaining notes.

If they keep at it, pretty soon Jovan Musk Cologne Spray will look like water. And smell just as weak. Normally, I would give you my real-time scent experience, but if you can imagine lightly scented alcohol water with floral/ musk tones that last less than a minute, that's my experience.

So what am I going to do? I might try what is considered the more concentrated version, Jovan Musk Oil Perfume Spray. It has a richer, darker look, although in this day and age, it could have color-enhancing dye in it. My second choice is, of course, eBay for the vintage formulas. I know that I can't control the fragrance industry and some of their unscrupulous business decisions, but it sure feels wonderful to vent!

 

Avon Night Magic Evening Musk

Avon Night Magic Evening Musk. With the words Night Magic in the description, you might as well consider it a top curio fragrance of epic proportions. I can't tell you how many positive reviews I read about this scent before deciding to get myself a bottle.

I vaguely remember trying this fragrance way back in the 1980's, but couldn't recall whether I liked it or not. Night Magic Evening Musk has been around forever. It's one of Avon's cult classics.

The Avon Night Magic Evening Musk Bottle 

 You don't see many dark blue glass bottles of perfume out there, so I give Avon some credit for the shade. Of course, the dark blue is meant to mimic the night sky and match the theme of the fragrance. The bottle itself is a flattened oval with a black plastic cap. The shape makes it prone to tip over. 

Testing Out The Magical Notes  In Real Time

 Night Magic Evening Musk contains Aldehydes, Neroli and Lily of the valley in its top notes. The middle notes contain  Jasmine, Rose and Ylang-ylang. Base notes include Amber, Incense, Sandalwood, Cedar, Vetiver and Musk.

• On First Sniff-From just sniffing the cap, I get a slight amber scent laced with an unusual chemical backnote.
• On First Spray-Eee gads, this is horrific. My nose is bombarded with the scent of Raid bug spray. The odd chemical notes live on and on. If these are the aldehydes, they smell more like formaldehydes. Lily of the valley? No. Neroli? No. Chernobyl? Yes!
• The First 15 Minutes-Alas, the stinkfest continues. My skin is hanging on to that awful chemical note. If I press my nose down firmly against my wrist, I can barely detect what could be baby powder. Unfortunately, the baby has been dipped in embalming fluid.
• After 30 Minutes-Jasmine, Rose, and Ylang-ylang? No. Just the same Raid with baby powder smell, only softer.
• Fully Blossomed Dry Down-Sour embalming fluid sprinkled with baby powder. That's it.

Where's The Magic? Did I Miss Something?

 How disappointing not to experience a bit of magic from this Avon classic. So many women adore this scent and proclaim the wonders of how good it smells on them. It has been described as a floral on some, musky-sandalwood on others, and a soft, powdery skin scent on others.

Here is the magic part about Night Magic Evening Musk; you need to have a certain type of skin chemistry or this fragrance is not going to smell good on you. It's just going to smell.
It now makes sense that  the very bottom of my bottle only has a large gold sticker with the word FLAMMABLE on it.

To Recommend Or Not To Recommend, That Is The Question

You smell

I had to give this a lot of thought because we are all so different when it comes to the perfumes we like. If you are looking for a soft powder scent or want to have an Avon classic for your collection, try it out. If you are looking for a sexy, noticeable musk fragrance for an alluring night out, forget it.

In my personal opinion, Avon Night Magic Evening Musk is one of the most poorly named fragrances ever created. Having a magical night wearing a musk scent surely has to be more exciting than smelling like sour baby powder.

It isn't pretty, nor sexy. It doesn't create much magic for the evening. It's just plain odd. There is nothing that distinguishes it as a fragrance to be worn at night; unless, of course, your date is taking you to dinner at Chernobyl.

Coty Vanilla Musk Cologne Spray- Use With Caution

Coty Vanilla Musk Cologne Spray 1oz

Do you like perfumes with musk notes? As long as I can remember, I have always loved exotic musk fragrances. I enjoy the lingering effects on my skin and the appeal they are supposed to have with the opposite gender.

However, musk is very controversial. I recall giving my Grandmother a sniff of one of my musk scents after which she said phew and turned her face away as fast as she could. She absolutely hated musk notes of any type. Many people do.

Over the years, I have tried scents where the musk is blended with other notes such as amber, sandalwood or patchouli. Fabulous.  Foolishly, this vanilla hating lady let curiosity get the best of her and she decided to try a vanilla-based musk. If it's from Coty, it couldn't be that bad, could it?

The Vanilla Musk Bottle

My 1 oz. cologne spray bottle has a copper-colored cap. The bottle is mostly an oval shape, but the back portion has a deep concave indentation. I think this is what makes it act so unstable as it tips over very easily. On a positive note, it is very narrow side-to-side for easy tucking into a purse or cosmetic bag.

Basically, A Simple Oriental Fragrance

According to online descriptions, this scent is classified as an Oriental with four distinctive notes: Vanilla, Musk, Sandalwood & Cedar. That's it. I was surprised about the Cedar note.

Coty Vanilla Musk In Real Time-Here We Go

• Sniffing The Nozzle- On first sniff, I get the unpleasant aroma of sweet burnt rubber baby doll. It's so bad, I don't even want to spray it on myself, but I will.
• The First Spray-Lots of alcohol, then something that smells like wet tree bark begins to emerge. Maybe that is the Cedar note.
• After 15 Minutes-Something syrupy and sickly sweet is taking place. The burnt rubber smell is really developing now. Somebody dabbed vanilla behind Barbie's ears, then tossed her into the fireplace.
• After 30 Minutes-I am dying here! Gagging on the scent of vanilla-dipped moth balls. The artificial chemical smell is pure torture. I should report this to Hazmat, pronto.
• Complete Dry Down-No musk, no sandalwood here. No soft comforting "skin" scent has emerged. The artificial sweet burnt rubber smells lingers on and on. I must wash this off. Now.

Skunk Award

 Somehow, I survived this stinky experience. What is most upsetting is that it smells so bad, I can't mix it with other fragrances. It is too hideous to recycle as a make-shift air freshener. It has to go. In a marked hazardous waste container by police escort.

For an oriental scent, it has neither mystery, allure, sex appeal or quality. It's not pretty or girly. I can't believe how many women give this perfume a thumbs up on review sites and places like Amazon.

 If you are looking for musk, this is not the one. As much as I go for unusual perfumes, Coty Vanilla Musk is too weird, even for me. It gets the Skunk Award for being one of the stinkiest fragrances I ever tried.